!!Disney's Mulan* AccidentalInnuendo: This line during "A Girl Worth Fighting For" as the men sees some women: ''"You can guess what we have missed the most since we went out to war."''* AcceptableTargets: The Huns. They have sickly gray skin, and black eyes with yellow irises.* AccidentalAesop: The titular protagonist is obviously intended as an example for girls to follow, and the rather blatantly feminist lesson is not to let your society's expectations (in this case, concerning femininity) prevent you from doing what you do best and keep you from doing what's right. Intentionally or otherwise, however, another lesson it teaches is "Don't knock patriarchal society until you've walked a few miles in its shoes." Something Mulan gets to experience from being on the front lines in a war is [[WarIsHell what kind of horrors the men are facing]] in hopes that their women won't have to. Also, while the villainous Shan Yu holds what many feminists would consider an enlightened view of women (the Huns and Xiongnu and other peoples of the steppes having no prohibitions against the women fighting alongside their men), all this means in practice is that he has [[WouldHitAGirl no sense of chivalry]] and no qualms whatsoever about slaughtering the women and children along with the men (as Mulan learns from the [[EmpathyDollShot Empathy Doll]] he left behind in a village his men burned to the ground). ValuesDissonance doesn't occur in a vacuum, after all; back before technology rendered superior physical strength and endurance less vital to victory in battle, even military forces that did permit the women to fight alongside men were majority male, and not ''every'' girl can grow up to be an ActionGirl GuileHero the way Mulan did.* AdaptationDisplacement: A lot of people in the West have no idea that the legend of Mulan has been around in various forms since the 6th century AD, and think she's an original Disney character.* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation:** Some people see Mulan as transgender, mostly because of the lyrics of "Reflection".** Some fans [[http://danascullys.tumblr.com/post/19035570033/am-i-gay-a-journey-of-self-discovery-with-shang speculate]] that Shang developed romantic feelings for Mulan [[HoYay before discovering she was female]].** Are Khan and Cri-Kee IntelligibleUnintelligible, or does Mushu just happen to understand animal talk?* {{Applicability}}: Though Fa Mulan doesn't adapt a male persona as a result of gender dysphoria, "Reflection" has been heavily embraced by the transgender community, and LGBTQ+ persons in general.* AmericansHateTingle: Despite famous voice actors such as Creator/JackieChan and using a local folk tale, the movie didn't do much at the Chinese box office. Some blame piracy, some worry that the native audience took issue with [[BroadStrokes the extensive reworking]] [[TheyChangedItNowItSucks of the original myth]], and some point to the fact that the Chinese government was in the middle of a bitter and spiteful dispute with the Walt Disney corporation thanks to Disney's Creator/TouchstonePictures label releasing ''Film/{{Kundun}}'', which prompted the Chinese to ban its helmer Creator/MartinScorsese from getting back into China and force ''Mulan'' to languish for a year before letting it out with an unfavorable release date just after the Chinese New Year's celebration stuffed the box office with other films (on top of that, ''Film/{{Kundun}}'' was a BoxOfficeBomb). Ten years later, Creator/DreamworksAnimation's ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda'' would prove much more to Chinese tastes.* AngstWhatAngst: [[spoiler:There are no psychological repercussions to Mulan killing thousands of men with the avalanche. Then again, it's a Disney film. In one of the next few scenes, when the survivors pop up from under the snow, Mushu even likens them to daisies. However, there is a great deal of angst to discovering a village that had burned to the ground. Of course [[WhatMeasureIsAMook the villagers were innocent and the Huns were villains]].]]* {{Anvilicious}}: Sexism is bad, [[WesternAnimation/SouthPark m'kay?]] * AwesomeMusic: "I'll Make a Man out of You", easily the most iconic song from the movie (and one of the more iconic songs from UsefulNotes/TheRenaissanceAgeOfAnimation in general), this song is widely and rightly considered awesome.%%** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MilR3Z1sASY "Short Hair"]].%%** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JlcheT4Q8M4 "The Huns Attack"]] appears to be a fan favorite too.%%** Special mention also goes to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r7kWRRS--YM "Avalanche"]].%%** Try and listen to the first 30 seconds of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dhm2ggrtBH8 "Gratitude"]] without being covered in goosebumps. It can't be done.* CompleteMonster: [[BigBad Shan Yu]] views the Emperor of China having built the Great Wall as both an insult and a challenge. As a violent BloodKnight, Shan Yu leads his horde of Huns to invade, relishing when China ''knows'' he's there. After capturing two Imperial spies, Shan Yu releases them with a message for the Emperor -- but has one of his archers kill one anyways as you only need one man to deliver a message. Shan Yu later ambushes the armies of General Li at a village, resulting in a mass slaughter, not only of the soldiers, but every civilian as well, [[WouldHurtAChild with no children spared either]]. Even after his army's downfall, Shan Yu attacks the Imperial Palace with his remaining men and takes the Emperor hostage, furiously trying to kill him when he refuses to [[KneelBeforeZod kneel to Shan Yu]].* DeliberateValuesDissonance: Gender roles and sexism. See {{Anvilicious}}.* EarWorm: "I'll Make a Man Out of You" and "A Girl Worth Fighting For" are ''merciless'' in this regard.* EvilIsCool: Shan-Yu and his mini boss bunch of Huns for the general badassery throughout the movie. Ironically, and probably on purpose, their defeats are all extremely comedic.* EnsembleDarkhorse: Grandmother Fa has more fans than her small screentime would suggest. Also, The Emperor.* FirstInstallmentWins: The sequel failed to do as well as the first film (to the extent that [[https://youtu.be/00BZSEWFhTo the trailer]] for both movies' Blu-ray debut doesn't show any clips from it), though Mulan and Shang actually got married as well as Yao, Chien Po, and Ling.* FoeYay: While it drifts into CrackShip territory, Mulan and Shan Yu has a strange fan following.* GeniusBonus: Mulan's horse is named [[UsefulNotes/GenghisKhan Khan]].* HilariousInHindsight: Mulan's male persona is "Ping", and given that she still claims to be from the Fa family, "his" full name takes on a [[ADateWithRosiePalms different meaning]] among modern Internet culture, doubling as an accidental StealthPun.** Jerkass councilor Chi-Fu squeals like a girl when a panda eats his slipper. A decade later, James Hong would star in ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda'' where he plays Mr. Ping, a goose who is ''the adoptive father'' of titular protagonist panda!** "Shan-Yu, snag on rooftop, hit by incoming rocket! [[WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles NO CAPES!]]"** Creator/EddieMurphy plays a dragon in this movie. Around three years later in WesternAnimation/{{Shrek}}, he plays a donkey that gets married to a dragon.** Soon-Tek Oh and James Hong both appearing in this animated film, which is interesting considering that both said actors had played North Vietnamese military {{Big Bad}}s in the ''Film/MissingInAction'' films (Hong played the [[DiscOneFinalBoss so-called]] main villain in the first film, while Oh played the villain in the second).** Seeing Ming-Na Wen seeking to become a true ActionGirl is hilarious to fans of Marvel's ''Series/AgentsOfShield'', where she is the ''undisputed'' [[TheAce best]] ActionGirl among the cast. Bonus points for the fact that Marvel is now owned by ''Disney''.%%** [[Film/IronSky "Mysterious as the dark side of the moon."]]* HoYay: The interactions [[SweetOnPollyOliver between Shang and Mulan when she was disguised as "Ping".]] Plus, Mushu encourages it as a normal part of male-to-male interaction.-->'''Mushu:''' Good, now slap 'im on the behind. They like that!* InferredHolocaust: Shortly before Shan Yu and his army find the Imperial scouts, you can see a village burning behind them. Implying they had just destroyed it, and probably killed everyone in it. [[spoiler:Averted with the little girl's village and the Imperial Army, which skips over the "implied" part.]]* IronWoobie: Mulan goes through a lot of frustration just to prove her worth to her family, to her country and to herself. Despite this she never backs down. * LoveToHate: Shan-Yu has a sizeable fanbase, mostly due having the deep gravelly husky voice of Miguel Ferrer.* MemeticBadass: Ping, the manliest badass ever to grace cinema. Blog/UnshavedMouse turned Mulan herself into one while reviewing each film in the Disney Animated Canon. The Emperor also has this reputation. * MemeticMutation: Go into any room (or bar, or internet chatroom...) full of people who grew up with this movie (teenagers and twentysomethings at this point) and sing "Let's get down to business" (the opening lyrics from "Make a Man Out of You"). The effect is similar to that of saying "[[Film/{{Labyrinth}} You remind me of the babe]]" in an older group -- they will not only finish the line for you, but also sing the entire song.** Mushu's "dishonor" rant is also particularly quotable to show displeasure or otherwise, particularly the line "Dishonor on you! Dishonor on your cow!"** The limited-time UsefulNotes/McDonalds Szechuan Dipping Sauce made to promote this movie. After the Season 3 premiere of ''WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty'' turned it, and the fact that it was apparently delicious, into a RunningGag, the internet exploded with requests to [=McDonald=]'s for it to be brought back.* MisaimedFandom: ** Mulan has got a reputation among some fans as a YouGoGirl girliness-hating {{Tomboy}}. This same fanbase reacts with disgust at her wearing the pink dress in most of the Franchise/DisneyPrincess merchandise, claiming it undermines her character. This is ignoring the fact that Mulan's discomfort at the beginning of the movie was over not wanting to let her family down -- and that she ''wanted'' to be a good wife. On a more superficial level she does actually like how she looks in the pink dress. She seems to wear pink because so many of the ''other'' princess characters are colour-coded with blue outfits (Cinderella, Belle, Jasmine and Snow White) and Sleeping Beauty likewise is shown in a pink dress for this reason.** There's strong irony in the fact that a movie about a woman trying to break gender roles in the name of protecting her father produced a song ([[RatedMForManly I'll Make A Man Out of You]]) that ended up becoming the [[SignatureSong most popular and remembered song]] of the movie.** The "Mulan is transgender" idea comes more from Westerners trying to shoehorn gender roles in the story, than the story itself. [[https://herskyofdiamonds.tumblr.com/post/144898410455/tealish-pink-onward-waywardson More than one Chinese-American and Chinese fan has reacted rather angrily at this]]. The problem is not that Mulan wants to be male -- the problem is that the sexist nature of her society does not allow [[MenAreTheExpendableGender women to contribute to the war effort.]]** Fans tend to paint Shang as a jerk for not instantly believing Mulan when the latter finds Shang and the army in the city to tell that the Huns are still alive and coming for the Emperor. While yes, this was a mistake on Shang's part, fans are forgetting the fact that Mulan (albeit with good intentions) deceived him and the other male soldiers about her gender since ''the day they met.''This does make a good argument on why Shang was right to be mistrustful of Mulan, after the latter was exposed as a woman. * MisaimedMarketing: Mulan's placement in the Franchise/DisneyPrincess franchise already counted but it reached a new low when the DVD joined the "Royal Wedding Collection". Not royalty, and not getting married to royalty.* MoralEventHorizon:** Shan-Yu crosses it when [[spoiler: he and his soldiers burn down the village at the Tung Shao Pass. There's an Empathy Doll Shot to indicate that even children were not spared. Plus, there's also the helmet and sword of Shang's father, indicating that he too died in the attack. In fact, the Huns butchered ''everyone'' -- no one is left to tell the tale. The scene abruptly interrupts the "A Girl Worth Fighting For" song, giving it GutPunch impact.]]** At first, Chi Fu is simply an arrogant bully and, considering he's a loyal servant of the Emperor himself, can only be considered a villain because of his misogyny. But ''boy'', does he ever make the best (worst?) of that, and when Mulan's gender is outed, he crosses the MEH by ordering Shang to kill her as though she were a traitor (never mind that she had proven herself a valuable asset to China's army up to that point). He only drives the point home that he's thoroughly unrepentant about his misogyny later on when, after Mulan helps defeat the Huns and save the Emperor, [[spoiler:the bully ''still'' demands the death penalty in a gesture of blatant ingratitude]].* MostWonderfulSound: When Mulan first sings, and viewers are bowled over by Lea Salonga's beautiful voice -- ''Ancestors, hear my plea...''* OneSceneWonder: ** [[OffWithHisHead Fa Deng.]]-->'''First Ancestor:''' ''(speaking to Mushu)'' You had your chance to protect the Fa family!\\'''Female Ancestor:''' Your misguidance led Fa Deng to disaster!\\'''Fa Deng:''' ''(carrying his head under his arm)'' Yeah. Thanks a lot.** The ordinary RedShirt who lit the signal tower ''while Shan Yu was staring him down''.-->[[DefiantToTheEnd Now all of China knows you're here]].** Shang's father, [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure General Li]], could be seen as such before riding off to join the rest of the Imperial Army at the Tung Shao Pass.*** It helps that he's voiced by James Shigeta.* PainfulRhyme: Mostly because of the glaringly incorrect grammar necessary to accomplish it: "Ancestors, hear my plea / Help me not to make a fool of me..."** Another verse comes soon after, seeming just a tad out of place in the song being sung: "Steadier than the undertaker / We are meeting our matchmaker..." * PeripheryDemographic: The song "Reflection" seems to have struck a small chord in the LGBT community, [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff at least in the Philippines.]]* SeinfeldIsUnfunny: There's a lot of combat in the movie, but for the most part it's kept offscreen, or consists of ranged combat at a distance that keeps casualties from being seen. After the outstanding success of the Creator/DreamworksAnimation ''WesternAnimation/KungFuPanda'' franchise established that ferociously wild, if stylized, {{Wuxia}} action with innumerable connecting kicks and punches are now acceptable family entertainment, ''Mulan'' comes off as rather timid. * {{Sequelitis}}: The sequel dealt with an arranged marriage idea to prevent an invasion, and then threw it out the window. Said sequel was widely panned, and less than two years after its release, the sequel machine was unplugged by John Lasseter.* SignatureScene:** Mulan singing "Reflection".** The "I'll Make A Man Out Of You" training montage song.** The burned Tung Shao Pass village that the Imperial Army failed to protect.** The avalanche sequence was a solid contender (especially from an animator's point of view).** [[spoiler:Shan Yu being blown to bits with fireworks]].** The end where [[spoiler:everyone bows to Mulan]].* SignatureSong: ** "I'll Make a Man Out of You" is by far the film's most popular song.** With that said, "Reflection" is a ''very'' close second and the first single of Christina Aguilera's career, and also, as mentioned above, has struck a small chord in the LGBT community. * StrawmanHasAPoint: While Shang not believing Mulan about the Huns having infiltrated the capital city is clearly intended to be a sign that he's just not ready to accept her contributions because of her gender, there is another possible explanation -- by lying about being male, Mulan has already proven she's capable of being dishonest. It's more reasonable to believe someone if you've never known them to lie. * UnfortunateImplications: Some critics (for example, WebVideo/TheNostalgiaChick, Lindsay Ellis) dislike the fact that Mulan turns down the post as the Emperor's consul to go home to her family. They think it implies that while a woman can be a hero, God forbid she have an actual position of power! They also [[http://www.teenink.com/hot_topics/pride_prejudice/article/289610/Mulan-Just-Another-Princess/ sometimes criticize]] the hint of romance with Shang, even though it's only a {{Maybe Ever After}} since they feel it implies that not even a woman who saves China can be complete without a man.* WinBackTheCrowd: After their [[Disney/{{Hercules}} last attempt]] to do this got strong reviews but a relatively poor box office take, they decided to go back to being a bit more adult. Surprisingly, this worked better than with ''Disney/{{Pocahontas}}'' or ''Disney/TheHunchbackOfNotreDame''.* {{Woolseyism}}: The Chinese dub calls the Huns the [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xiongnu Xiongnu]], which is more historically accurate as the Huns are best known for invading Europe under [[UsefulNotes/AttilaTheHun Attila]]. It is theorized that the two groups were related.* TheWoobie: Mulan really makes you feel for her after her disaster with the matchmaker, especially when she sings about her struggles in "Reflection". And when she's abandoned in the mountains and left feeling like a worthless failure, it's again very easy for the viewer to feel sad for her.%% ** Shang, when he loses his father to Shan Yu and his army, although he is this of the [[IronWoobie iron]] variety, as he manages to stay composed.%%ZCE Cri-Kee is arguably also one of these. ----